Heating system for railway cars



E. E. GOLD AND w. H..|vERs. HEATING SYSTEM FR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY I Patented Jan. 3, 1922,.

2 SHEETS--SHEET I INVENTORS am firm r. r Sam E. E. GoLnAND w -.f/H. Ivens. HEATING SYSTEM E OR RAILWAY CARS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY I. I9I9.

1,4= )2,0?v Patented M1922,

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EDWARD E. GOLD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.,

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AND WILLIAM: H. IVERS, OF STL LOUIS,

MISSOURI, ASSGNORS TO GOLD CAB, HEATENG @t LGHTING COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. Y

HEATING SYSTEM ron itArLWAY cans.

incarica.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patnted JaIL 3, 1922.

Application filed July 1, 1919. Serial No. 307,962.

To all whom it may concern: Y

Be it known that we, EDWARD E. GOLD and VVILIJAM H. Ivars, both citizensof the United States of America,`the former residing in the borough of Manhattan, city, county, and State of New York, and the latter residing in St. Louis, in thel county of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented certain new and useful limprovements in Heating Systems for Railway Cars, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to means for heating railway cars, being especially adapted for the heating of freight cars, such, for example, as thosel of the refrigerator type used for the transportation of perishable fruits,V vegetables and other produce. To prevent the freezing of such produce during winter transportation, it is desirable to heat the interior of the car by the application of mild heat just suiieient to avoid the possibility of freezing. for this purpose it is desirable to utilize steam taken from the locomotive boiler, asin the heating of passenger cars. It is also desirable to provide for a certain storage of 'heat in order to bridge over intervals lwhen, the car or train is detached from the locomotive. For this purpose heat storage .radiators are preferably used, in which the water of condensation is accumulated and serves as the heat storage medium. Tn the use of such radiators it becomes necessary to` provide means for avoiding the freezing of the condensation water. v

The present invention is designed to accomplish these ends in a manner affording practical means for application'to freight cars of the existing refrigerator car type. The construction and novel features will be developed as the .description proceeds.

Referring. to the accompanying drawings,-

Figure 1 is a fragmentary transverse section of the lowerV portion of a refrigerator car, showing the preferred application of the invention thereto;

F ig. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal seaction mainly in the plane of the line 2--2 1n Fig. l; y

Figu is a vertical mid-section of avdrainage trap.

Referring to the drawings, A designates the ioor, and B the side walls of the freight car. Beneath Vthe floor' is a radiator chamber C. Within the ioor structure are providedues D D for circulating hot airfrom the chamberC to the remote portions of the car, and any suitable number of return flues E E. The drawings make no attempt to illustrate these fues in detail, nor the course of the outfiowing heated air or returning cooler air, since such Vflue constructions are Well understood. The longitudinali' return iues Ecommunicate with a transverse rereturn Hue Ef which in turn discharges'into a dro flue 'F leadingto the bottoml of the cham er C.;

Within thevchamber vis a heat storage radiator G. v'There mayfbe any suitable number of these, two such radiators being shwn. These radiatorsare tanks or reservolrs of any suitable' construction,-adapted to receive steam` and condensation water. They are Vspaced suitably apart and Sufficiently separated from the walls of the chamber Cto permit the free upward circulation of air between and around them.

Thus, Whether the radiators'Gcontain steam or hot condensation water, they serve as means for heating vthe air in thechamber C, so that this air may circulate throughout the ues in the car loor and thereby impart a mild heat to the car to protect its contents from freezing; the hot air as partially cooled returns through the flues E E and F to the bottom of chamber C to be again heated and re-circulated.

team from the locomotive is sup lied by means of alongitudinal train pipelLas in any Y. system for heating passenger cars.

From this pipe is led a branch pipe 1,'pr`efy erably near the middle Vofthe car, and'in this branch pipe is introduced preferably a pressure reducing valve J of any suitable construction, whereby to Ydiminish the pressure from the varying pressure in the trainpipe to a uniform pressure, say for example, of 2O pounds (more or less). This steamadmission pipe T leads to an inlet vvalve K which controls the admission of steam-to the radiators. With two radiators, as shown,

the pipe I/ leadingfrom the valve K has two branches T2 entering the radiators at one end and passing interiorly of them, preferably through to the Aopposite end, then up toward the top and back toward the entering p end, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, and terminatingin an upturned yportion opening near o the top oi' the radiator shell. Thus the steam isy admittedl to bothfradiators. Y Thefseveral pipesV 1%,r 1I', d, `drain .to fallow point L, where is provided a gravity `drainagetrap M of the ordinary well-known construction, wheref by when the steam is shutoiand the pressure falls, this trap'may-open'and drain off any' water from these pipes, so asy .to prevent freezing.V Y v I A Ypipe N communicates With'the interiors of thetwofiradiators at their tops, and `eirtends -down toV a point suitablybeneathjthe radiators, terminating in a thermostatic fdrainagetrap P of aiiyrordinary or known construction. Y This trap isc preferably Y ci they kind which can be set to either function normally as a thermostatic trap,or to blow l pose od steam. The construction shown in 11S.Y

Patent" Not-1,050,210, dated 4January le,

"1913, isa suitable"constructionfor thisp'un The f tra-p'` discharges'V downwardly througha drip pipeY or t. horn P., which s preferably providedwjwith" subdividing par# tition Q Ato provide ventilation, as set'forth in said patent. The function of this trap l? is to afford a free discharge orair from the radiators when steam is4 firstturned on, and to subsequently Vprevent waste ot steam,

Atrapping oft,` however,A any "i condensation that may accumulate in thelpipeN. .When thefcar is detached from, the `train this therino'staticjtinap V opens"` and drains oii' all con- 1 l"densation from this"pipe.` The trap Pis adaptedffto open, rlike the ordinary' Vtraps used in heating,H at a temperature ei'ia (feeding about 150d'egreesF. i

To the bottoms lof the radiators .G1 are i connected pipes RR whichrunite andlead 4()k fthe thermostatshell,4 this cap having preferably; grooves, so V'as to make intermittent contact with the diaphragm` and yet afford the latter k adequate support. Whatever construction may be adopted for 'this Ydrainage trap, theimportant feature is that it'shall operate to open andfdrain oit the Water from the radiators wheneverthe ylatter `fall 'in temperature to a point sufliciently low to afford dangeryot 'ultimatefreezing. It yis lpreferable to drain olii'V thisl water as soon as it cools sufi'icicntly to halvenok further heating eiiiciency. f Itis preferable that' thetrap shall operateata teinperaturey of about 60 FL,` since whengthe hotwater stored in the radiators has fallen `to that temperature,` `it is 11o longerof any value rfor. heating purposes, while yet it is Warm enough to thaw its wayl outthrough the drain it perchance the passage be somewhat obstructed by ice. v Thefsteam inlet valve K might bea-.handoperated valvefbutlin' thel preferred formV oit" the invention itis an automaticvalve un- 'der thermostaticfcontrol. Thermostatically controlledsteain'inlet valves are known as applied to passenger cars,` wherein a thermo- `stat within the car operates through'an elec-V f tricY circuit or some Votherintervening ine- `diuiiu'tc control 'the opening and closing of a steam inlet valve. Such systems would be inapplicable for freight cars vbecause such cars have no,V `electric equipment. Pneuniatically-controlled means ,might possibly Y be used, n utilizingthe ,compressedV air ot'V the air brake as. the medium', butthis is so `highly undesirable in practice as to be inhibited. Vhat isl desired is a'therinamotive device within the ycar 'soisensitive and yet so powerfulzthat Vit mayV by @direct action opcratey to open and closetlie steamfinlet valve.

Uur invention,providesY such a thermostatic controllentlie construction being that best shown in Fig. l.V `Withinj thejcar is exposed Va controlling thermostat T comprising a per'- i Yso Y l'orated casingY c permitting circulation oi? l air through it, and supporting within it one oit-more thermo-motive diaphragms- (preferably two or more) y consisting otdislr-like chambers of thin sheet ymetal VcontainingaK4 suitably volatile liquid capable of expandq ing` under allow temperature (say 40.9- E), so` as to expander bulgethe diaphragm vessels,fand mechanical means for directly Coinni'unicating thefmoveinentthus generated? to the'. valve stem".V VrAs it is preferable ,to place ing this movement, its horizontal arm' pressing downwardlyoii the valve stein e', which be the same as any ordinary steam adinissionvalve of the globe valvetype, consistthe vessels vertical planes,A we vprovide an 'Y elbow lever g pivoted ath, for communicatis movable Wahimaouaif protecting tube j. The internal construction oi.l the valve may ing for example of a disk or tappet mounted on the bottom end ofthe stein c', as .shown in Fig. 2'; or any othersuitable valvel `construction `may be used. ,'.lhe important thing isfthat thevalve shall be closed toits seat againstthe steam pressure bythe direct eX- Q pansion ofthe thermo-motive vessels AWe proportion the parts'soI that the valve shall open when the teml'aerature falls to or near 3,20 F., to admit steam; and shall close 'when theteinperature inthe car rises'to say 4091?;

i Vilhen first turning steam into the car with the radiator col'd,'or whenever itis desired Y 4to accelerate the heating effect, theldrainage trap P mayy advantageously fbe thrown out ot action and thefst'eain be permittedcto blow directly through this trap. In the case of' the ordinary vertical trapsv having a Vseparate blow-'off valve,rthis 'is accomplished by opening such blow-ofi'gorwin themcase `of the use of the particular type of trap illustrated, the thermostatic element of the trapv is rendered inoperative by throwing over the control lever 7c, which operates after the manner set forth in said Patent No. 1,050,210, to unseat the thermostatic valve of the trap and permit the steam to blow through.

The operation of the apparatus will be apparent from the foregoing description.

The invention provides a heating system which fully performs all the conditions hereinbefore set forth, being eective to protect the contents of the car Vfrom freezing, and with the thermally-controlled inlet valve set forth, being wholly automatic in its operation so long as the car is connected to a locomotive boiler or other source of steam.

lt will be understood that our invention is not limited to the precise construction and arrangement herein set forth, these matters being susceptible of a Wide range of variation within the terms of the subjoined claims. For example, it is not essential to all features of our invention that the radiator or radiators be located in a radiating chamber beneath the car Hoor, having aircirculating flues communicating therewith. nor is our invention limited to the precise construction or type of condensation storage radiator set forth, as other known construc- 30 tions may be substituted.

What is claimed is A car heating apparatus adapted for protecting freight cars from freezing, comprising a radiator chamber, air-circulating flues 35 communicating therewith, a steam trainpipe, a radiator in Said chamber, `a branch from said train-pipe, a thermostatic inlet valve controlling said branch pipe, an. inlet pipe therefrom entering the radiator', a low 40 temperature trap .adapted to drain the radiator, and a high temperature trap connected to the upper part of the radiator. l

In witness whereof, I have hereunto wiLLiAM ir. ivnns. 

